"Ben-Hur" is a remake of a 1925 film, which was a remake of a 1907 short film, about a Jewish prince, Judah Ben-Hur, played by Charlton Heston (The Ten Commandments), after his childhood friend Messala is assigned to serve as Tribune of the land.

They have a falling out and Ben-Hur is soon blamed for killing--by accident--the local governor by accident. He is then sent into slavery, until he saves the life of a Roman battle ship captain. Once becoming one of the greatest chariot racers in Rome, Ben-Hur returns to his home in Jerusalem to find his mother and sister, banished to the Valley of Lepers by Messala, and seek his vengeance on the Tribune.

The nativity isn't exactly a grabber. Joseph was cast too young by the way. He was an elderly fellow and couldn't shoot for kids anymore. That's why it was such a big scandal when Mary turned up pregnant.

Heston is a great actor of his time, but his time is over. I see this performance spoiled by the evolution of screen acting over the past 35 years and realized he is the greatest OVERactor of his time.

How does the movie call itself a Tale of the Christ in the main credits when the Christ only shows up as a couple of cameos? It was just as much a movie about the Christ as "March of the Penguins" was about camels.

Sure, there is a happy ending with the crucifixion at the end of the extremely long film, but Christ really has nothing to do with the story. I didn't mean to sound like a smart-a** and suggest the crucifixion is a happy ending, but you'll have to see the picture to know what I mean.

The rowing scene went on WAY TOO long. The big Chariot race is way too long, but there's a lot of guys who get jacked up in it, and that was funny to watch. TOO LONG, seems to be this movie's theme. Every scene had SOME portions that could have been left on the editing room floor, and I even read a lot of homo-erotic subtext in the film was cut out of the final print. That would've made the almost 4 hour movie even longer…ugh.

The best thing about the movie was the cinematography. For 1959, the cinematography was making new strides, once again allowing shadows to fall across the sets, which was rare since the silent era. Of course, they didn't allow shadows on the face, but that wouldn't come for another 11 years.

Overall, I thought "Ben-Hur" has been over rated among top films of all time. It's far too long, and the pacing is unsettled. I really do not think it deserved as many Oscars® as it was given, but depending on what else was nominated this may have been the only decent release that year. Again, whatever.